Destiny's Wave
Destiny's Wave (命運波 pinyin mìngyùn bō),Poetheather on the Crystal Hall forums is an ancient Chinese Taoist sword "made for Women who walked the path of the Sage and the Warrior".Destiny's Wave It was apparently forged by the Artificer Jialing,Forging Anew and its fame has been compared to Excalibur.Tea and Synergy Among other attributes, it serves as the badge of office of the Handmaid of the Tao. The sword is not only magic, but sentient: it has the soul of an ancient Chinese sage bound into it, or, as Lan Caihe Ho says, "she is a teacher....who let herself be...placed in the blade." Appearance and acessories Destiny's Wave is a jian, the classical Chinese style of straight double-edged swords. Instead of steel, however, the blade is made of milky jade or some substance of similar appearance. The hilt is tightly wrapped in deep jade green string. The pommel nut is also of a silvery metal with an etched design resembling waves or clouds. From the end of the pommel hang two tassels, with knot work strings of vibrant yellow. The guard is done in a classic lion's head motif, with green stones in the eyes. Its scabbard is a rich chestnut brown, showing clearly the grain of the wood. The bottom of the scabbard has an intricate cap of the same silvery metal as the pommel. There is a similar cap at the top of the scabbard, featuring the wave-like desine as the pommel. It came originally to the hands of Alexander Farshine in a cloth-covered carrying box, which had the property of cutting the link between Alex and the Tao, turning him back from his Handmaid form into his original body. However, the box was destroyed by the Demon Lord of the Hell of Fiery Immersion, locking Alexander as the Handmaid until such a time as she is able to fashion a new box. Properties Destiny's Wave can cut through literally anything if it's so desired by the wielder -- or act as blunt as a truncheon if that's what its mistress wants, blocking even immaterial objects and energy constructs such as those created by Tennyo. It's supposed to be indestructible. As the badge of office of the Handmaid of the Tao, when first unsheathed by the individual chosen for that role it will create a link between such individual and the Tao, turning the wielder into the Handmaid. Such link could in the past be broken by the carrying box, but after the destruction of the box in 2006 there is no known way to break it. The spirit of the sword acts as a tutor for the Handmaid and also has its own power set. It is later revealed that the spirit has been a previous Handmaid. For Christmas 2007, the Monkey King gave Bladedancer a talisman that she can use to make the sword and scabbard invisible so she can carry it anywhere. As of some time in the summer of 2006, it has been "at least five hundred years have passed since she was out last". The spirit has been at various times described as an "ancient Chinese sage," as a previous Handmaid, and when speaking out loud she has a voice described as very similar to Eldritch's.Call The Thunder: Chapter 5 - Idiots 'R Us! Since all Artificers are supposed to look and sound identical, this suggests that Jialing was not only Destiny's Wave creator, but also her first wielder, the first Handmaid, and chose to bind her own soul to the sword. References Category:Artifacts Category:China